One of the biggest projects I've been working on long term is centered around a gift for my sister. She drives a Jeep Wrangler, and when I saw Red Heart's verigated yarn called "Woodsy," I knew I needed to do something for her Jeep with it. It's no secret that I really like Jeeps, or that it gets pretty cold here in Minnesota (polar vortex, anyone?). So, I decided to make her a blanket.

In knitting the blanket, I used a moss stitch with Caron's "beige" one pound skeins of yarn. By doubling the yarn, I was able to get a thick, chunky look with it. I decided to use my normal moss stitch with the body to give it a subtle but sophisticated pattern.

For the border, I definitely went outside my normal, and I attached the "Jeep yarn" - as we've begun to call it - to the edges with a Tunisian crochet technique to cast on. From there, I used a garter stitch to keep the edges lying flat and differentiating it from the rest of the body.

In the back of the Jeep, it blends almost seamlessly with the beige upholstery. With the exterior envelope of the vehicle closed, it is now impossible to see just how many boxes of Girl Scout cookies are covered by the blanket. The size stretches perfectly across the back of the vehicle, and it will provide plenty of security when it's not providing some warmth.

Since this project took so much time - about ten months, I decided to experiment with some of the leftover yarn, and I've created a new design for the new year.

In the Chinese zodiac, we have entered the year of the horse! Since I know a lot babies are to be born this year (including mine), I knew I should experiment with another prototype of the yearly animal. I've loved doing these for the past two years (the snake for 2013 and the dragon for 2012), and I'm really excited about the execution of this one.

Since the Jeep blanket project took so much time and this horse is made in the same yarn, I decided to add it to the package for my sister.

One of my favorite details is the verigated yarn for the hooves, mane, and tail. That is a detail that I'm going to try to keep consistent with any of the ones I make. I'm really excited to see how many of these will come out over the course of the next year.